Potassium buffering in the central nervous system

P Kofuji, EA Newman - Neuroscience, 2004 - Elsevier
Neuroscience, 2004Elsevier
Rapid changes in extracellular K+ concentration ([K+] o) in the mammalian CNS are
counteracted by simple passive diffusion as well as by cellular mechanisms of K+ clearance.
Buffering of [K+] o can occur via glial or neuronal uptake of K+ ions through transporters or
K+-selective channels. The best studied mechanism for [K+] o buffering in the brain is called
K+ spatial buffering, wherein the glial syncytium disperses local extracellular K+ increases
by transferring K+ ions from sites of elevated [K+] o to those with lower [K+] o. In recent …
Rapid changes in extracellular K+ concentration ([K+]o) in the mammalian CNS are counteracted by simple passive diffusion as well as by cellular mechanisms of K+ clearance. Buffering of [K+]o can occur via glial or neuronal uptake of K+ ions through transporters or K+-selective channels. The best studied mechanism for [K+]o buffering in the brain is called K+ spatial buffering, wherein the glial syncytium disperses local extracellular K+ increases by transferring K+ ions from sites of elevated [K+]o to those with lower [K+]o. In recent years, K+ spatial buffering has been implicated or directly demonstrated by a variety of experimental approaches including electrophysiological and optical methods. A specialized form of spatial buffering named K+ siphoning takes place in the vertebrate retina, where glial Müller cells express inwardly rectifying K+ channels (Kir channels) positioned in the membrane domains near to the vitreous humor and blood vessels. This highly compartmentalized distribution of Kir channels in retinal glia directs K+ ions from the synaptic layers to the vitreous humor and blood vessels. Here, we review the principal mechanisms of [K+]o buffering in the CNS and recent molecular studies on the structure and functions of glial Kir channels. We also discuss intriguing new data that suggest a close physical and functional relationship between Kir and water channels in glial cells.
Elsevier